Food: Local pizzerias serving Chicago-, New York-style

Published: Tuesday, March 4, 2014 at 04:09 PM.

“When I was younger, it was sausage on a pizza, meatballs on a pizza,” he said.

As far as toppings, he also likes peppers and onions, as well as the BBQ Chicken pizza on his New York’s Famous menu.

“I like to stick with the original as thin as we can get it. It’s as good as New York. The only thing that would make it better is a brick oven,” Trancynger said.

Some of his favorite New York pizzerias include Patsy’s, Totonno’s, John’s and Ray’s.

“Chicago is known for deep dish, but people from there eat the thin, square pizza,” said Frankie D’s Chicago Pizzeria & Pub owner and Chicago native Frank Reiland.

He first learned the traditional Chicago-style recipe while working in pizzerias in his hometown and has served it at Frankie D’s, 1405 W. 15th St. in Panama City, for more than a decade. Reiland is opening a second beach location this month at 2725 Joan Ave., “just for delivery and pick-up,” he said.

The best-selling Frankie D thin crust is topped with fresh plum tomato sauce, lots of mozzarella, sausage, fresh mushrooms, onions and green peppers, along with a few spices. The crust’s edges are crisp but the inside is soft, after being baked in a stone deck double deck pizza oven.

PANAMA CITY — Pizza is a classic crowd pleaser for all ages, but when it comes to toppings and styles, the divide begins.

New York’s Famous Pizza & Pasta (NewYorksFamousPizza.com), 1000 E. 23rd St., has been serving New York-style pizza in Panama City since March 2005.

A large, hot slice of N.Y.’s Special — the best seller next to pepperoni — with Boar’s Head pepperoni, hand-sliced sausage, hand-mixed ground beef, bacon, black olives, chunks of green bell peppers, mushrooms and thinly hand-sliced onions, will satisfy but leave you craving more.

“It’s in the products, from the New York-style softened, filtered water to the topping and Wisconsin cheese, Grande. It’s whole milk, low moisture, one of the best cheeses available,” said John Trancynger, originally from Yonkers, N.Y., who co-owns the pizzeria with his oldest son, John. “The sauce is made from Southern California plum tomatoes. You want a thick sauce, but not too thick, and we use a good quality flour you can’t buy in the store.”

But it’s not just the products, but who is making “your pizza maker” that makes a difference.

“The quality of the pizza depends on how much he stretches it,” added Trancynger. “Our crust is firm on the bottom, thin style.”

The medium to thin crust is crisp on the bottom, yet soft enough to fold.

“The proper way of eating a New York pizza or any pizza is one finger on the top and two on the bottom,” said Trancynger, who demonstrated with one hand. “Any Italians in New York who see you cut it with a fork and knife will get sick and run away.”

But Trancynger, who has lived in Panama City for the past 14 years, does offer his pizzeria customers utensils for tackling the slices.

“We make an extra large pizza that’s 22 inches for the counter, and even in our boxes (for carry-out and delivery), they’re 20 inches. We give a big slice of pizza,” he said.

On Tuesday morning, Trancynger took out a tape measure. The cheese measured 22 inches across, while the pepperoni was 22½ inches.

New York’s also has a thick crust pizza on the menu, the Sicilian topped with cheese and red sauce.

The Panama City restaurant initially was opened by Trancynger’s son Mitchell and Joey’s on the Beach owner Joey Dimeglio, who is no longer a part of New York’s Famous.

“I’ve never been a pizza maker, but I know how to do it. Mitchell’s good, learned from Joey. His father had a pizza business in Yonkers,” said Trancynger, who hopes one of his younger sons — police officers in Yonkers — will take his place at the pizzeria one day.

“When I was younger, it was sausage on a pizza, meatballs on a pizza,” he said.

As far as toppings, he also likes peppers and onions, as well as the BBQ Chicken pizza on his New York’s Famous menu.

“I like to stick with the original as thin as we can get it. It’s as good as New York. The only thing that would make it better is a brick oven,” Trancynger said.

Some of his favorite New York pizzerias include Patsy’s, Totonno’s, John’s and Ray’s.

“Chicago is known for deep dish, but people from there eat the thin, square pizza,” said Frankie D’s Chicago Pizzeria & Pub owner and Chicago native Frank Reiland.

He first learned the traditional Chicago-style recipe while working in pizzerias in his hometown and has served it at Frankie D’s, 1405 W. 15th St. in Panama City, for more than a decade. Reiland is opening a second beach location this month at 2725 Joan Ave., “just for delivery and pick-up,” he said.

The best-selling Frankie D thin crust is topped with fresh plum tomato sauce, lots of mozzarella, sausage, fresh mushrooms, onions and green peppers, along with a few spices. The crust’s edges are crisp but the inside is soft, after being baked in a stone deck double deck pizza oven.

Chicago-style layers the meat under the cheese with veggies on top, while New York-style puts the meat and veggies on top of the cheese.

“The crust on our Chicago is more of a cracker crispy crust, and New York is more flamboyant. New York is more of a doughier crust, a lot more elastic, so you can fold it over. They use more whole milk cheese, which makes it much greasier with the meat and cheese mixed together on top,” Reiland said.

Though he prefers Chicago-style, Reiland said, “I’m not one of those that hold a grudge. I love New York-style also.”

The thin pizza cut in squares is what most Chicago natives regularly get down at the corner pizzeria, such as Lou Malnati’s, but occasionally they do indulge in the deep dish.

“It’s a once-a-month thing,” he said.

Frankie D’s (FrankieDPizza.com), family owned for more than 10 years, also serves thick and deep-dish pizza.

“It’s soft, a little closer to New York-style,” said Reiland, who still gets most of his pizza toppings from Chicago companies, such as Vienna Beef.

One of Reiland’s specialty pizzas, Chi-Town Classic (double sausage and cheese), pays tribute to where it all began.

Enzo’s Pizza & Grill (EnzosPizzaAndGrill), 1322 Beck Ave. in St. Andrews, offers the traditional Chicago-style thin crust and deep dish, as well as the Double Decker: two Chicago-style thin crust homemade pizzas stacked together. Build your own Double Decker or go for a specialty; even Garlic Butter Crust option is available. If you are short on time, keep in mind that a thicker pizza will take longer to cook.

Even the thick crust and deep dish pizzas at Frankie D’s take 25-40 minutes to cook. But you can always call an order ahead of time at either pizzeria to dine in, pick it up or have it delivered. If you dine in from 5 to close Wednesdays, get half price cheese pizza.
If you want to bake your own Chicago-Style Stuffed at home, Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza locations on 23rd Street and Tyndall Parkway sell a four-pound pizza with two layers of dough stuffed with red sauce, salami, pepperoni, sausage, ground beef and onions topped with red sauce, green onions, tomatoes and cheese.

Reiland shared his recipe for The Greek pizza at Frankie D’s.

“The reason it sticks out so well is not necessarily that it is a Chicago focal point,” he said, “but the Chicago crispy thin crust works well with this version of pizza.”

PICK A PIE
Mellow Mushroom Pizza Bakers ranked No. 1 in the News Herald’s 2013 Best of Bay, followed by Red Elephant Pizza & Grill and Joey’s on the Beach. Mellow Mushroom recently released a Homegrown Picks menu, offered through March 31. Inspired by employees from more than 160 locations, the menu includes a Quirky Turkey Club Pie — a Mellow Mushroom pizza with an olive oil and garlic base layered with applewood smoked bacon, turkey, caramelized onions, fresh spinach, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses and finished with sliced organic apples and a swirl of honey mustard.